Top 10 Scottish Books

June 2004

1. McCrae's Battalion
2. The Ferris Conspiracy
3. Indian Peter
4. How the Scots Took Over London
5. Irish
6. Scotland a Visual Journey
7. Deadly Divisions
8. The Highland High Way
9. Highland Resistance
10. Wait 'Til You Hear This

'Now, after 12 years of exacting historical detective work, Jack Alexander has reclaimed the 16th Royal Scots for posterity... the truth proves more remarkable than legend. McCRAE'S BATTALION is the definitive account of the best-kept secret of the First World War.'
Football Trader

'What Jack Alexander gives us is an intriguing and often moving history...Alexander's book is full of absorbing stories. He claims that it was 16 years in the writing and I believe him. Judging by the footnotes, appendices, bibliographies and acknowledgements his research was extraordinary.'
Scottish Sunday Herald

In Glasgow's meanest streets life started well for the young Paul Ferris. How did he become Glasgow's most feared gangster, deemed a risk to national security? This is one man's unique insight into Britain's crime world and the inextricable web of corruption - a revealing story of official corruption and unholy alliances.

'Cites vast tracts of taped evidence suggesting the police tried to frame him with drugs, guns and , on one occasion, actually threatened to kill him. Recently, he discovered an entirely fabricated charge on his criminal record. Since the book was published, Strathclyde Police have refused to comment on any of these allegations; nor will they say anything about Ferris's impending release.'
Maxim Feb 2002

'The adventure-packed life of Peter Williamson could be straight out of a Boy's Own comic.'
Aberdeen Evening Express

'Even by the dramatic standards of the eighteenth century, the story of Peter Williamson is an extraordinary one... His adventures, which included a spell living with the North American Indians, read like fiction rather than history.'
The Herald

'Skelton's book would be fascinating just for its account of indentured slavery - the inhuman racket that preceded the African trade. But Indian Peter reinvented himself in so many guises - each more flamboyant than the last - that his biography makes a rip-roaring read.'
The Scotsman

'It's a splendid title'
Sheena McDonald, Sunday Express

'A terrific book about the powerful Scots who have taken over London.'
The Independent

'The Scots are London's oldest and most successful immigrant group. This book is required reading for anyone who wants to know how and why they made their mark.'
Daily Mail

'The joys, the risks and the motivatations of mountain climbing are at the heart of this remarkable book.'
The Glasgow Herald

'joyfully recalls more than half a century of expeditions in every corner of the globe...This however is not simply a boastful account of Slesser's albeit impressive achievements. Nor is it an inventory of hardships withstood. Instead, it uses his ample stock of stories to question why climbers choose to face such enormous risks - of hypothermia, altitude sickness and fatal falls...This fine book could make even the most armchair-bound readers reach for their boots.'
Daily Mail

Renowned photographer Douglas Corrance has been taking photographs of Scotland for more than a quarter of a century. This magnificently produced book presents a visual journey around his native land, covering everything from the rugged peaks of the Highlands to the diverse nature of our cities and towns. As Corrance spent over a decade as photographer to the Scottish Tourist Board it is not surprising to find in these pages a multitude of shots of the archetypal Scotland, but he skilfully manages to bring something new and fresh to every image, stamping each with his own unique perspective. The result is a collection of remarkable, striking photographs which will give the reader - whether visitor or native Scot - a better understanding and clearer view of the myriad facets of Scotland's beauty.

'Early signs are it could be a best-seller. The ingredients are all there. Gangland from the inside. Tough characters on both sides of the law. Drug dealing, protection rackets and money lending - subjects with which Ferris has more than a passing knowledge.'
The Sunday Post

'Forget Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, anything Paul worked on would bring out the true nature of the British crime scene.'
7 April 2002

 

THE HIGHLAND HIGH WAY is a magnificent high-level route through some of Scotland's most dramatic scenery and across its finest hills. Running for 105 miles from Loch Lomond to Fort William, the route includes Black Mount, one of the greatest hill walks in the country; an exhilarating ridge walk along the Aonah Eagach; and a Munro extravaganza in the Mamores.

The grand finale is Ben Nevis, approached along the spectacular Carn Mor Dearg arete. The eight-day route described in this book takes in at least 14 Munros, among them Ben Lomond, Ben Lui and Beinn Dorain.

In addition, four further excursions are suggested along the way, including Scotland's most spectacular hill, Buachaille Etive Mor, bringing the total to 23 - a real Munro-bagger's delight

Cautionary voices in 1914 were largely drowned in the clamorous orgy of jingoism which greeted the outbreak of war. The Highland gentry, naturally enough, were prominent in this crusade from the promised land of modern romance - albeit in the officer corps. A century and a half of radical land-centred agitation had not altered that elegant old balance of responsibility. When the 5th Seaforths marched away from Dingwall, with the guns of the fleet crying out over Cromarty and the Union Flag a-swagger on every dunghill steeple, the Duke of Sutherland was their honorary colonel.'

 

'A must for any Andy fan.'
Greenock Telegraph

'I enjoyed the historical details of his early childhood growing up in Glasgow at the end of the war.'
Hebridean

 

 

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